Books: Sizzling Sixteen

Sizzling Sixteen
by Janet Evanovich
Read by Lorelei King
Copyright 2010
Playing time: 7 hours
Unabridged

Janet Evanovich seems to have returned to form with Sizzling Sixteen, or else I'd just been away from the books long enough to find them entertaining again. Since Twelve Sharp I'd felt something was missing from the books, some unspoken spark, but I did not feel that so keenly this time. Publisher's Weekly calls this one "tepid," and reviewers on Amazon blast it to pieces. So maybe I am feeling generous at the moment.

Stephanie Plum must rescue Vinnie, her boss and cousin, as he has gotten himself into deep trouble. She has also inherited a "lucky bottle" that she is carrying around. For some reason this one thing reminded me of Wicked Appetite, another Evanovich book that I listened to recently (and confused at times with the Plum series).

There is a lot of Lula and Connie in this book. While I was rather glad to see more of Connie, Lula grew a bit tiresome. However, she's a fun character so I didn't mind it too much.

Stephanie and Lula run into an alligator, there are stink bombs, a funeral home, fire bombs, and dead people.

Basically, business as usual.

Ranger and Morelli make appearances, but if you're looking for resolution to Stephanie's love life, you won't find it here.

Take the book for what it is: light-hearted entertainment.